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Decreased insulin signaling in the brain contributes to both memory loss and brain degeneration in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. However, it is difficult to treat patients with insulin without causing side effects. At the Alzheimer’s Research Center, we developed an intranasal insulin delivery method that targets insulin to the brain without causing unwanted side effects. When sprayed high into the nasal cavity, insulin travels rapidly into the brain along the nerves involved in smell. Our intranasal insulin treatment has been shown by researchers in Germany to improve both memory and mood in normal adults. Along with our collaborators at the University of Washington we showed that intranasal insulin improves memory, attention and functioning in patients in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease and in patients with mild cognitive impairment. Research is now in progress to determine how long the benefit of intranasal insulin can be maintained with prolonged treatment. Our current intranasal insulin clinical trial assess the safety and benefits of this treatment over a six month period using the most advanced nasal spray device for delivering insulin to the brain.